Structural response of grid-reinforced bituminous pavements

Grid reinforcement is becoming a standard construction and rehabilitation technique to improve the performance of bituminous pavements. Currently, selection of the appropriate grid type and position is based on empirical criteria or derived from the results of laboratory tests which consider a single aspect of the mechanical behavior of the grid-reinforced systems. An improvement in the existing design and testing approaches could be obtained considering the actual response of grid-reinforced systems under vehicular loads. An instrumented pavement section was constructed to achieve this objective by installing a glass fiber polymer grid (FP) and a carbon fiber/glass fiber grid (CF) inside a double-layered asphalt surfacing along an in-service road. This pavement is part of a wider project which also involves a RILEM inter-laboratory test on the same reinforced systems. The pavement response to falling weight deflectometer (FWD) and real-scale truck loads was measured using pressure cells and asphalt strain gauges installed inside the pavement. A layered elastic theory (LET) model was adopted to perform both back-calculation of layer moduli and forward-calculation (simulation) of pavement stress and strain. The FWD and the real-scale tests yielded congruent results highlighting that the strain field inside the double-layered surfacing was considerably reduced by the installation of the CF/glass fiber grid whereas the glass FP grid was probably too stiff, potentially leading to interface debonding. The LET model proved to be a simple and effective tool for a first-approach analysis of the reinforcement pavement response.     

Optical fibre-based sensors for distributed strain monitoring of asphalt pavements

Strain distribution of asphalt pavement varies in transverse and longitudinal directions, and distresses, such as cracks, ruts and settlements, often occur randomly, which can be efficiently measured by distributed optical fibre sensing technology. As bare optical fibre is weak to resist shear and torsion forces during pavement construction, the protective technique is required. Therefore, a flexible asphalt-mastic packaged optical fibre sensor was developed in this research for distributed strain monitoring of asphalt pavement. Theoretical analysis on strain transfer of the optical fibre-based sensors embedded in asphalt pavement was conducted to improve the design of the protective layer and remove the strain transfer error. Afterwards, laboratory tests on the asphalt concrete beam were carried out to validate the performance of the sensor. Finally, the proposed sensors were applied to detect the in situ performance of urban asphalt pavement under temperature and traffic loads. The results indicate that the proposed optical fibre sensor detects the distributed strain of asphalt pavement effectively, and the in situ data show significant effects of temperature and traffic loads on asphalt concrete course. This research contributes to the full-scale monitoring and health assessment of large-span pavement.     

Development and calibration of shear-based rutting model for asphalt concrete layers

This study improves a shear-based rutting model for asphalt concrete (AC) layers and calibrates the model with field data. With dynamic modulus-based material parameters, the laboratory rutting prediction model was improved and determined by the wheel tracking test and full-scale accelerated pavement test. Through the field survey on several in-service pavements, the rutting model was calibrated to be applied to AC layers. In the improved rutting prediction model, the ratio of maximum shear stress to shear strength was introduced to combine asphalt material design and pavement structural design. The speed correction coefficient and the new temperature processing method improve the accuracy of the rutting model. The calibrated rutting prediction model proves to be reasonable and accurate in predicting the rutting depth of AC layers.     

Effect of pavement design parameters on the behaviour of orthotropic steel bridge deck pavements under traffic loading

This study evaluated the effect of the pavement design parameters on the behaviour of orthotropic steel bridge deck pavements under traffic loading using a three-dimensional finite element model. Four types of paving materials were considered in this analysis: polymer concrete, epoxy asphalt concrete, polymer-modified stone mastic asphalt concrete and mastic asphalt concrete. The maximum transverse tensile strain was developed at the bottom of the pavement under a tyre of dual tyres or on top of the pavement between two tyres. From the sensitivity analysis, better interface bonding between the deck plate and pavement led to a significant enhancement of bottom-up fatigue cracking resistance, especially for 40-mm-thick pavements. As pavement temperature increased from ? 20 to 60°C, critical tensile strain increased significantly, and corresponding locations moved from the bottom to the top of the deck pavement.     

Thin asphalt pavement performance equation through direct computation of falling weight deflectometer-derived strains

A fundamental aspect in a pavement management system is the evaluation of the pavement structural condition and its capability in supporting the designated traffic. The nondestructive technique of the falling weight deflectometer and the layered elastic model are commonly used to identify pavement structural condition. The approach in this article is mechanistic–empirical, with the intent to correlate the strain at the bottom of the asphalt layer with the number of coverages to failure. Strains were computed through mathematical approximation of the deflection basin measured at failure. The proposed asphalt criterion showed the same trend of the subgrade strain criterion developed in conjunction with the reformulation of the California bearing ratio (CBR)-Beta design criteria. The approach provided encouraging results when compared with the other analyses in the development of the CBR-Beta criteria. The database was from the full-scale flexible pavement testing at the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg, MS, USA.     

基于细观力学的纤维沥青混凝土有效松弛模量

为了研究纤维沥青混凝土的本构模型,将其视为以沥青混合料为粘弹性基体,纤维为弹性夹杂的两相复合材料。对基于复合材料细观力学理论建立的有效模量表达式进行了修正,提出了纤维沥青混凝土的割线有效松弛模量。以聚酯纤维沥青混凝土为例进行了有效松弛模量的解析分析和模拟蠕变实验的有限元分析,分析结果与试验数据的比较表明,该文提出的割线有效松弛模量模型对于纤维沥青混凝土粘弹性力学行为具有很好的预测能力。应用该模型对路面弯沉变形进行了有限元分析,结果表明:纤维的加入有效的改善了沥青混凝土路面的粘弹性性能。     

Hierarchical asphalt pavement deterioration model for climate impact studies

Quantification of the impacts of projected climate change on road pavement performance is possible using predictive models that correctly consider key causal factors of pavement deterioration. These factors include climate, traffic, properties of materials and the design of pavements. This paper presents a new model developed to predict rutting in asphalt surfacing. In addition to the key causal factors of road deterioration, the developed model takes into account several sources of uncertainties, particularly those inherent in future climate change predictions and model input parameters. The asphalt surfacing rut depth progression model was developed from a hierarchical road network data structure using a Bayesian regression approach resulting in a model for each surfacing group. The model was applied within a Monte Carlo simulation framework to derive probabilistic outputs of pavement rut depth progression and maintenance costs under the pre-determined future climate scenarios. This model is useful for application at both the network and project levels to develop road management strategies and policies.     

Dynamic model and criteria indices of semi-rigid base asphalt pavement

This paper presents a dynamic model of asphalt pavement by considering the characteristics of moving tyre load, visco-elastic performance of material and layered system of pavement. The pavement is defined as an infinite layered system with the tyre load moving at a constant speed, and asphalt concrete (AC) is characterised as a kind of visco-elastic material. Using the spectrum analysis method, a complex tyre load is decomposed into a series of harmonic loads. Based on the frequency characteristics of a linear system, a universal formulation pattern for differential visco-elastic constitutive relations is provided. And then, a model is set up to analyse the dynamic response of asphalt pavement under moving harmonic load, and then to extend to the arbitrary moving load according to the superposition principle of a linear system. The dynamic responses of seven typical semi-rigid base asphalt pavements are analysed using the model. Analysis results indicate that the tensional strain at the bottom of the AC layer and the vertical compression strain at the top of the roadbed are not suitable for key indices of the semi-rigid base asphalt pavement. The shearing strain at the bottom of the AC layer can be taken as a key index to evaluate the fatigue performance, and the vertical compression strain at the top of the pavement surface can be taken as a key index to evaluate pavement rutting, and the vertical shearing strain at the top of pavement surface can be taken as a key index to evaluate top–down crack.     

A mechanistic approach to evaluate the potential of the debonding distress in asphalt pavements

The debonding distress in asphalt pavement structures is a critical problem that affects the performance of asphalt concrete pavements. It occurs at the layer interface due to the poor bond quality between adjacent asphalt concrete layers and/or when stresses at the layer interface exceed the strengths of the material at the interface. The debonding of the adjacent layers, especially the top surface layer of an asphalt pavement, is a contributing factor to the premature cracking of pavements. Hence, the debonding distress can lead to a reduction in the life of the pavement. This paper presents an analytical and experimental framework to evaluate the potential for debonding at the layer interface of asphalt concrete pavements. Computational analysis was performed to determine the critical stress and strain states in layered asphalt pavements under moving vehicle loads using the Layered ViscoElastic pavement analysis for Critical Distresses (LVECD) computer program developed at North Carolina State University. This computational analysis enables a greater understanding of the critical stress that is involved in debonding and the ways that such stress is affected by pavement design parameters and environmental conditions. In addition, a prediction model was developed that can determine the shear bond strength at the interface of asphalt concrete layers with different tack coat materials at various temperatures, loading rates and normal confining stresses. The systematic and mechanistic framework developed in this study employs the maximum shear ratio concept as a shear failure criterion and provides a tool to evaluate the effects of various loading, environmental and pavement factors on the debonding potential of asphalt pavements. The overall advantages of the mechanistic framework and approach using the LVECD analysis tool will help lead to better understanding of the debonding mechanism, proper selection of the tack coats, and economic benefit in highway pavement maintenance and rehabilitation costs.     

Modified dynamic modulus test and customised prediction model of asphalt-treated drainage layer materials for M-E pavement design

The past two decades have seen great developments and application of asphalt treated open-graded mixtures as a drainage layer in pavement in the United States. Nevertheless, the previous research has also indicated weak mechanical properties of the drainage layer compared with dense-graded asphalt concrete. This study sought to quantify the stiffness of the drainage layer materials for incorporating them into a mechanistic-empirical pavement design framework. It was found in this study that both the current dynamic modulus test method and the empirical prediction model, which were developed for dense-graded asphalt concrete, may not be applicable to drainage layer mixtures with high porosity. Under this circumstance, a modified dynamic modulus test and a calibrated model to predict the dynamic modulus for drainage layer materials have been developed based on the AASHTO TP 342-11 test method and the NCHRP 1-37A model in this study.     

Impact of asphalt concrete fatigue endurance limit definition on pavement performance prediction

Many well-constructed Hot Mix Asphalt pavements have been in service for 40 or more years without any evidence of fatigue cracking. This field experience suggests that there exists a strain level, known as the fatigue endurance limit (FEL), below which an asphalt concrete pavement will not exhibit fatigue cracks. Several studies have been conducted to define and verify this limit. Each of these methods is associated with certain assumptions regarding the nature of the FEL and heretofore a comprehensive comparison of each has not been made using a consistent set of mixtures. Likewise, the impact of any observed differences in FEL on the predicted pavement performance has not been made. This paper investigates and compares six different methods for identifying the FEL: NCHRP 9–44A approach, simplified viscoelastic continuum damage model, smeared-healing with continuum damage model, plateau value approach, pseudo-strain analysis method, and reduced cycles method. Each method is found to yield different values ranges from approximately 30–170 microstrains at 21.1 °C. The predicted FEL from each of the six methods are then used with the mechanistic empirical design algorithm to evaluate their effects on predicted pavement performance. Simulation outputs show different pavement performance and perpetual pavement structural design thicknesses from each of the methods. The study outcomes are expected to benefit future field verification research of FEL as it provides comprehensive analyses using six different methods. This future verification research may indicate the method that best represents actual perpetual pavement design and performance.     

Full-depth flexible pavement responses to different truck tyre geometry configurations

Pavement stresses and strain responses due to tyre loading are essential data for design and performance analysis. The magnitude and distribution of these responses are primarily affected by the tyres configuration geometry. This study investigates the longitudinal strain responses at the bottom of a hot-mix asphalt layer for full-depth medium-volume flexible pavement under different truck tyres design. Pavement testing was carried out with a user-control accelerated pavement facility at various speeds and tyre inflation pressures and loading. Three truck tyre configurations: dual-tyre (11R22.5) and two wide-base tyres (425/65R22.5 and 455/55R22.5) widely used in the truck industry were examined. A 3D finite element model was developed to quantify surface stresses to loading at various critical locations in the pavement after being calibrated with the field-measured strains. Field measurements showed that the 455 wide-base tyres yield 7% more longitudinal strain than a dual-tyre assembly at the same tyre pressure.     

Local calibration of rigid pavement performance models using resampling methods

The performance prediction models in the Pavement-ME design software are nationally calibrated using in-service pavement material properties, pavement structure, climate and truck loadings, and performance data obtained from the Long-Term Pavement Performance programme. The nationally calibrated models may not perform well if the inputs and performance data used to calibrate those do not represent the local design and construction practices. Therefore, before implementing the new M-E design procedure, each state highway agency (SHA) should evaluate how well the nationally calibrated performance models predict the measured field performance. The local calibrations of the Pavement-ME performance models are recommended to improve the performance prediction capabilities to reflect the unique conditions and design practices. During the local calibration process, the traditional calibration techniques (split sampling) may not necessarily provide adequate results when limited number of pavement sections are available. Consequently, there is a need to employ statistical and resampling methodologies that are more efficient and robust for model calibrations given the data related challenges encountered by SHAs. The main objectives of the paper are to demonstrate the local calibration of rigid pavement performance models and compare the calibration results based on different resampling techniques. The bootstrap is a non-parametric and robust resampling technique for estimating standard errors and confidence intervals of a statistic. The main advantage of bootstrapping is that model parameters estimation is possible without making distribution assumptions. This paper presents the use of bootstrapping and jackknifing to locally calibrate the transverse cracking and IRI performance models for newly constructed and rehabilitated rigid pavements. The results of the calibration show that the standard error of estimate and bias are lower compared to the traditional sampling methods. In addition, the validation statistics are similar to that of the locally calibrated model, especially for the IRI model, which indicates robustness of the local model coefficients.     

A case study on diurnal and seasonal variation in pavement temperature

An empirical numerical model was established for analysing the temperature variation of pavements in Xi'an area of China. This model can consider the influence of solar radiation, atmospheric temperature and humidity. It was verified by comparing the calculated and measured temperature of the natural ground surface. The effect of seasonal variations of temperature on asphalt and concrete pavement surfaces were then calculated. The temperature distribution of both asphalt and concrete pavements in January and July was investigated using the model. For each type of pavement, four groups of different pavement materials were considered to investigate the influence of thermal parameters for pavement materials on the temperature distribution. Furthermore, the diurnal variation of pavement temperature was analysed and discussed based on the normal climate characteristics in Xi'an. The results of the analysis showed that the diurnal variation of pavement temperature is very significant and must be considered in the design of a pavement.     

Effect of full-size and down-scaled accelerated traffic loading on pavement behavior

Accelerated pavement testing (APT) is an effective testing procedure to evaluate asphalt pavements. With APT it is possible to determine and measure the structural response and pavement performance under a controlled, accelerated damage accumulation in a compressed period of time. However, different types of APT technologies can lead to different results. Full-size loading devices simulate road traffic accurately, but are expensive, while down-scaled size simulators are cost effective, nevertheless further away from reality. In this work, two types of APT mobile load simulators with different loading characteristics are compared with respect to pavement response in the field and in the laboratory. The MLS10 is a full-size simulator, whereas the MMLS3 is a one-third scale device. The relationship between the devices was studied in terms of the measured strains induced by both machines in the same pavement. Therefore, a testing field was instrumented with strain gauges and first trafficked with MLS10. Later, a slab of the instrumented pavement was cut off the road and tested in the laboratory with the smaller MMLS3. Furthermore, the structure of the pavement was modelled with a viscoelastic finite element method model and the moving loads of both machines were simulated considering size, speed and approximate footprints of their tires. As for the pavement materials, the properties of the different asphalt layers were determined in the laboratory. Experimentally acquired strain data were used to validate the models. Stress fields under different loading and environmental conditions were analysed and compared. The evaluation shows that the models can predict the pavement response under different loading conditions. However, they still need to be improved to increase the accuracy under different conditions. Further, the analysis of the strains show that both load simulators induce a different stress–strain situation and scaling of the pavement should be considered.     

Mechanical characteristics and strengthening effectiveness of random-chopped FRP composites containing air voids

In random-chopped fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites used as a retrofit material, a high volume fraction of voids is inevitable due to the manufacturing characteristics. In this paper, the mechanical characteristics and strengthening effectiveness of random-chopped FRP composites containing air porosity are investigated through experiments and numerical analysis. Coupon-shaped specimens with various material compositions were manufactured to examine the uniaxial tensile performance, and the air voids in the composites were measured by a microscope camera. In order to predict the overall performance of the composites, a micromechanical formulation that accounts for porosity was newly developed. The derived model was incorporated into a finite element (FE) code, and the model parameters were estimated by comparing uniaxial tensile test results for various systems of random-chopped FRP composites. In addition, concrete beams strengthened with the composites were produced to evaluate their load-carrying capacity. The FE predictions of the composite structures were then compared with experimental data to verify the predictive capability of the proposed numerical framework.     

Asphalt concrete rutting predicted using the PEDRO model

This paper presents a theoretical viscoelastic approach, called PEDRO (PErmanent Deformation of asphalt concrete layers for ROads), for predicting rut formation in asphalt concrete materials subjected to traffic loading. Input data are traffic parameters, asphalt concrete viscosity and asphalt layer thickness. Vertical strains that cause rutting in the pavement were estimated using the PEDRO approach. A large-size type of wheel tracking machine, which has the capability to subject asphalt concrete slabs to different loadings, has been used to study the effects of wheel load and tyre pressure. Rut development in the slabs under various loading conditions was predicted. The approach has shown reasonable results as regards predicting densification and shear rutting in the tested asphalt concrete slabs.     

Experimental investigation of basic oxygen furnace slag used as aggregate in asphalt mixture

Chinese researchers have commenced a great deal of researches on the development of application fields of basic oxygen steel making furnace slag (BOF slag) for many years. Lots of new applications and properties have been found, but few of them in asphalt mixture of road construction engineering. This paper discussed the feasibility of BOF steel slag used as aggregate in asphalt pavement by two points of view including BOF steel slag's physical and micro-properties as well as steel slag asphalt materials and pavement performances. For the former part, this paper mainly concerned the mechanochemistry and physical changes of the steel slag and studied it by performing XRD, SEM, TG and mercury porosimeter analysis and testing method. In the second part, this paper intended to use BOF steel slag as raw material, and design steel slag SMA mixture. By using traditional rutting test, soak wheel track and modified Lottman test, the high temperature stability and water resistance ability were tested. Single axes compression test and indirect tensile test were performed to evaluate the low temperature crack resistance performance and fatigue characteristic. Simultaneously, by observing steel slag SMA pavement which was paved successfully. A follow-up study to evaluate the performance of the experimental pavement confirmed that the experimental pavement was comparable with conventional asphalt pavement, even superior to the later in some aspects. All of above test results and analysis had only one main purpose that this paper validated the opinion that using BOF slag in asphalt concrete is feasible. So this paper suggested that treated and tested steel slag should be used in a more extensive range, especially in asphalt mixture paving projects in such an abundant steel slag resource region.     

Fatigue of bituminous mixtures

This paper presents an interlaboratory test campaign organized by the RILEM 182-PEB Technical Committee. In the campaign, 11 different test methods, comprising uniaxial tension/compression, 2-, 3- and 4-point bending and indirecttension tests, were utilized in order to investigate fatigue characteristics of a dense graded asphalt concrete mixture. The testing conditions specified were sinusoidal excitation at 10Hz and 10°C using controlled strain and stress modes. In total, more than 150 fatigue tests were carried out during the investigation. The fatigue test results were analyzed using both classical as well as continuum damage mechanics approaches. The fatigue test results obtained using the classical fatigue approach are considerably influenced by test type and mode of loading (controlled stress or strain) used. Consequently, this approach has limited use in realistic fatigue characterization of bituminous materials and pavement structures. In contrast to the classical approach, models founded on continuum damage theory may serve to isolate intrinsic fatigue characteristics from the influence of so-called biased effects, which are largely caused by the accelerated laboratory testing. The continuum damage models investigated may constitute steps, towards a rational mechanistic fatigue characterization model, which are important for effective future pavement design.     

Nonlinearly viscoelastic analysis of asphalt mixes subjected to shear loading

This study presents the characterization of the nonlinearly viscoelastic behavior of hot mix asphalt (HMA) at different temperatures and strain levels using Schapery’s model. A recursive-iterative numerical algorithm is generated for the nonlinearly viscoelastic response and implemented in a displacement-based finite element (FE) code. Then, this model is employed to describe experimental frequency sweep measurements of two asphalt mixes with fine and coarse gradations under several combined temperatures and shear strain levels. The frequency sweep measurements are converted to creep responses in the time domain using a phenomenological model (Prony series). The master curve is created for each strain level using the time temperature superposition principle (TTSP) with a reference temperature of 40°C. The linear time-dependent parameters of the Prony series are first determined by fitting a master curve created at the lowest strain level, which in this case is 0.01%. The measurements at strain levels higher than 0.01% are analyzed and used to determine the nonlinear parameters. These parameters are shown to increase with increasing strain levels, while the time–temperature shift function is found to be independent of strain levels. The FE model with the calibrated time-dependent and nonlinear material parameters is used to simulate the creep experimental tests, and reasonable predictions are shown.